“No man has the right to be an amateur in the matter of physical training. It is a shame for a man to grow old without seeing the beauty and strength of which his body is capable.” ― Socrates
Considering it’s already May, I’d bet that I’m not the only one here wanting to get as fit as possible before summer. We want to be healthy and in good shape and able to be physically active.
Unfortunately, considering how stressful our daily lives have become, with unhealthy food readily available, with an even unhealthier lifestyle, with the difficulties of changing all those bad habits … getting fit isn’t always an easy process.
Many of us give up before we get very far.
So here are a few tips to help you get fit for summer.
- Cardio. Lots of it. The principle is simple: losing body fat is really about being in a calorie deficit — if you burn more calories than you eat, your body will burn fat for fuel. And there’s no better way to get into calorie deficit, in my experience, than doing lots of cardio.
- Lift heavy. If you lift heavy weights (whether you’re a man or a woman), gene activation will mean that you will put on quite a bit of muscle. Compound exercises (also known as multi-joint) are best — squats and deadlifts and bench press.
- Eat adequate amounts of protein. From what I’ve read, 1 gram of protein per pound of body weight is more than enough. I do only track protein while trying to eat close to no sugar, as healthy as possible, and as many green vegetables. Seems to work okay.
- Focus on how you look in the mirror, not weight. If you want to know what you’re (literally) made of, look in the mirror. In other words, focus on lowering your body fat.
- Commit. Last year, in July, I weighed 146 pounds. Now, after 10 months of daily working out, I weigh 168.2 pounds. You must commit, you must assume responsibility. It’s you. Just you.
- Drink water only. Well, almost only. I have a cup of coffee in the morning, and another one after working out, but other than that, I only drink water, all day long.
- Change things up. Do some HIIT (high intensity interval training) instead of your usual LIIT, or punch the life out of a punching bag. Try different workouts, exercises, and have fun. Also, remember that the worse you are at the technique required to properly do an exercise, the more calories you burn.
- Rest is just as important as exercise. It seems that 8.5 hours of sleep do the trick. Also, do try to go to bed before 10 PM.
Getting leaner and fitter doesn’t happen overnight, or even after a week or even two months. It’s not the destination you should be obsessing about, but the journey.
Focus on making exercise and eating healthy daily habits, and you will have the body you want.
Here’s are a couple progress pics, just for the fun of it:
There’s still a lot of work to be done, but it will be done.
Also, here’s how I looked like two years ago, in August:
That t-shirt doesn’t even fit me anymore.
Okay, that’s enough photos of me for the next five years or so.
Thanks for the tips and motivaton – still got a long way to go till I can post pictures like that.
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Took me a long way too.
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If only. lol. Glad you’ve made such progress. I’m very fit but I sure don’t look that good. lol
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I think the goal is to FEEL good.
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Need this motivation now. Thanks Cristian. :)
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My pleasure.
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Good tips, Cristian. I’ve cut out the “lots of cardio” for now to concentrate on those squats and deadlifts. But you outline the perfect steps for looking good this summer. Drinking water only is a biggie. Most guys fail on beer or soda.
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Empty calories those. The only thing I genuinely struggle with is eating sweets. I like chocolate too much…
Anyways. I think lifting heavy is also essentia, and I see guys at the gym who never do cardio, but lift heavy, and they’re shredded.
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Pull ups I love pull ups.
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Me too.
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Yes! Lots of water, even walking an hour and mix in jumping jacks or squat thrusts a few times. Watch what you eat sugar wise. Plain Greek yogurt is better than most others that tend to have 20 or more sugar grams.
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Greek yougurt is fantastic. I always prefer protein over carbs and fats.
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Yes, less carbs is better.
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